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I wondered about this too, and I asked my recruiter and he told me that if you are in the military, you do not have to register. But if at any time from the age of 18 until 26 you are NOT in the military (your contract ends and you do not re-enlist, or you are discharged, etc.), you do need to register for Selective Service.

It's a real simple process and takes very little of your time. And since there is no chance at all of a draft ever being reinstated, there is nothing to be scared of.

They've changed the laws on Selective Service since, but when I enlisted (Jan 1971) I was 17 and turned 18 in DEP. I did not have to register and had a letter from my recruiter indicating I was in Marine Corps DEP in case the police asked for my SS card (they did that back then to mess with the hippies). Once I successfully completed my service obligation (six-years then, any combination of active/reserve service) I had no further obligation to register. I served six-years on active duty (plus another 15 in active reserve status), so I legally never registered for the draft.

Personally, in this day and age, it won't hurt you to register. In my day, I could have possibly been drafted and thus created a paperwork problem for my recruiter. The Corps had first claim on me so I wasn't going anywhere else, but he'd have to do a paperwork shuffle to get the SS people to shut up.

What I do know is if you have completed your eight years of military obligation, you don't have to register for the draft. You served your time and your DD-214 is the proof. If you are Honorably Discharged or Retired early for illness, injuries or wounds, your obligation is done too.